1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a specifically designed background shield for soccer practice. More specifically this shield is designed to return the soccer ball back to the area from where the ball is kicked. Still more specifically, this background shield is related to a foldable and portable shield which may be transported and which is foldable for storage and for transportation.
2. State of the Prior Art
There are a number of patents describing various background shields for practicing various games. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,591,753 and 4,072,295 disclose foldable screens, backstops or batting cages in which a batter can swing at a thrown baseball without the danger of having the baseball hitting a catcher or a spectator. These are of primarily steel mesh or chain link fences.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,693,472 shows a portable background net made of nylon or other low extensible threads suitable for practicing tennis, cricket, baseball, etc.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,229,180 describes a game played against a vertical wall with an upper backwardly sloped section, which wall is apparently non-portable and against which a tennis ball, etc., is bounced against the wall. Each of the players has a catching device comprising a handle, a wire loop connected to the handle and an open-ended bag attached to the loop. One player bounces the ball to a designated area on the wall in a manner such that the bounced ball cannot be caught by an opposing player in his "bag".
None of these disclosed devices is designed for soccer practice, particularly one that will bounce the ball back to the player.